re: “When sitting idle, such as during the holidays, it wouldn’t be unusual for an Amazon Echo owner to ask Alexa, “tell me a challenge to do.” “
I would think those challenges should work the other way around, sorta like: “Alexa, let’s mine some bitcoins ...” or “Alexa, let’s hack the Pentagon.”
Apparently Alexa serves the same function for humans as a laser pointer does for cats.